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What a sad, horrible tragedy for the people of Poland. The President of Poland, Lech Kaczynski, along with his wife and dozens of military and political leaders, were killed in a plane crash on their way to commemorate the Katyn massacre in Russia.
New York Times: Television showed chunks of flaming fuselage scattered in a bare forest near Smolensk, where the president was arriving for a ceremony commemorating the murder of more than 20,000 Polish officers by the Soviet secret police after the Red Army invaded Poland.
The governor of Smolensk region, Sergei Antufiyev, said the plane did not reach the runway but instead hit the treetops and broke apart. His spokesman later said that air traffic controllers had recommended the president’s jet land at another airport because of bad visibility, but that the crew decided to land anyway. The crash came as a staggering blow to Poland, wiping out a large swath of the country’s leadership, including the commanders of all four branches of the military, the head of the central bank, the president and many of his top advisors. In the numb hours after the crash, leaders in Warsaw evoked the horror of the massacre at Katyn, which stood for decades as a symbol of Russian domination.
Via Gateway Pundit, The Guardian reported that the airport was closed.
The pilot was told Smolensk airport was closed because of thick fog, according to the news agency Interfax. He was offered a choice of landing instead at either Moscow or Minsk, the capital of Belarus, but decided to continue with the original flight plan to Smolensk.
The pilot made three unsuccessful attempts to land before the crash. On the fourth try the plane fell apart, Interfax said, citing officials at Smolensk’s interior ministry.
The Astute Bloggers and Fausta’s Blog have much more information.
Kaczynski was a great conservative leader who spent his life fighting for freedom. This isn’t just a tragedy for Poland, but for anyone in the world who cherishes freedom. RIP.
Update: It’s unclear how many are dead.
The Wall Street Journal: Reports of the number killed in the crash varied. Polish officials put the figure at 88, while Russia’s Ministry of Emergency Situations said 96 had died and Russia’s Investigative Committee said the total was 132.
Putin will head the investigation into the crash.
Russian President Dmitry Medvedev named Prime Minister Vladimir Putin to head the commission to investigate the crash and dispatched Russia’s emergency situations minister, Sergei Shoigu, to the site.
Polish leaders are taking the necessary steps to keep the government running.
According to the Polish Constitution, the speaker of the Sejm, Poland’s lower house of Parliament, becomes the interim head of state in case of the death of the president. The interim president is required to call early presidential elections within two weeks from the day the president dies. The elections must take place within two months from the announcement of the election date.
Bronislaw Komorowski, a key presidential candidate in the presidential elections that would normally be scheduled in the autumn, is Poland’s current Sejm speaker. According to government spokesman Pawel Gras, he is also on his way to the capital.
Piotr Wiesiolek, first deputy president of the National Bank of Poland, will become an interim governor, according to Poland’s central bank law. Mr. Wiesiolek will head the central bank until the Parliament appoints the new governor proposed by the President.
Update: When I first heard about this tragedy this morning I was suspicious. I’m not the only one.
Update: Read about the Katyn Massacre at Reaganite Republican.
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